What A Difference A Day Makes
by Christina Black Hunter
Summary: The Joker pushes Harley away, but will she try to stick with him or cut her losses and go for someone who is actually nice to her? My first attempt at Batman characters. Rated M because their will be fluff! (but not too much fluff)
1. Day Trip

**AUTHORS NOTE:**

_**Hello!...This is my first attempt at anything batman related. I thought the Joker managed to get the girl but what if she lost her to a better man? I haven't really chosen a particular universe for this story but I'm probably going to mix a bit of everything in.**_

_**Comment, review, tell me your thoughts.**_

_**Christina x**_

_**DISCLAMER:**_

_**I do NOT own any of these characters, DC does. **_

"Look, I'm sorry Mista J! I promise I will never interrupt you while you're plottin' again puddin'!"

Edward was sitting in the hallway with Crane, waiting to go see why the Clown wanted to see them. It made his stomach churn when he saw the way that jerk had reduced what was once an intelligent, beautiful young woman, to a painted up grovelling dumb blonde he used as he saw fit.

"Please Mista J, I'll stay out here I promise, please!"

"Go feed the mutts Harley, and stop calling me pudding!"

"Yes Sir"

She turned toward the kitchen and began rummaging in the refrigerator for meat.

"Boys! Come see the plan for the next job"

Jokers suddenly elated voice radiated through the theatre, both Edward and Crane walked past Harley as she slapped a peace of raw stake onto a plate. Her blue eyes where surrounded by smudged paint and tear tracks.

"NIGMA MOVE YOUR ASS, I'M WAITING"

Edward had stopped in front of Harley, he cleared his throat and quickly walked across to the Jokers study and closed the door behind him.

Harley huffed and pulled out another three bits of stake. Why did he treat her this way? Didn't she do everything he asked? The newness of her "relationship" with the Joker had begun to ware off quickly, replaced by the mundane chore of being Joker's "little woman". He was only nice to her when he needed someone to distract guards or hold back the Batman as he got away. Without her. Other than that, he pretty much ignored her and when she tried to grab his attention, like today by bringing him a cup of coffee while he was working, asking nicely how he was getting on, she always ended up pleading and begging like a dog.

She opened the back door and put the plate down in front of her hungry hyenas.

"There you go baby's, Mama loves you both, yes I do Sweetie"

They greeted her with gleeful giggles and she scratched behind their ears as they licked her cheeks before turning to devour their stakes.

Harley headed back inside and into the bathroom where she washed off her remaining grease paint and changed into a loose top, a pair of jeans and some sneakers. She let her hair down and looked at her reflection in the mirror.

"Jeese you look like crap"

She looked skinny. Months of running after the Jokers every whim was taking its toll. How much longer could she keep this up?

Her cheekbone throbbed and she knew their would be a new bruise to add to her collection. She decided to quickly throw on some foundation and mascara to cover it up, and turned her attention to her hair...She hated it. He liked it when she played the dumb blonde but lately it had become just cruel not cute.

"This has to change, but how?...I wonder …"

She glanced into the empty makeshift living space toward the still closed over door of the Jokers study. The low rumbling of male voices was rolling from under the door.

"Day trip"

She smiled to herself and grabbed her purse from the sofa and sneaked out to the parking lot where she saw an old green Hollywood Wasp that screamed Edward Nigma. She tried the door and it opened.

_Really Eddie in this neighbourhood._

She climbed in and hid in the back where she waited for the meeting to finish.

Edward shook Jokers hand, tipped his hat to Crane who had decided to stay for a few drinks and took his leave.

He got into his car, started the engine and began his drive home.

"HIYA EDDIE"

He slammed on the brakes and let out a shocked huff as he turned to find Harley lying in the back seat of his car beaming with excitement.

"Sorry sweetie I didn't mean to give you a fright"

"No problem…Why are you in my car Miss Qu…"

"Call me Harley Eddie, it won't kill you to be a little less formal with me honey"

"sur…hang on, why are you in my car? And dropping the formality could kill me"

"Because I wanted to get out of the old place and have a day trip…how could it kill you?"

"ok but why my car…because "puddin" is rather possessive of you, he bumped off one of my men because he looked at you the wrong way"

"Because you never seem to hang around too long and to be fair that guy kinda cornered me sweetie, he was protecting me"

Edward just looked at the smiling blue eyed blonde as she climbed over the seat into the front next to him.

"What are you doing Harley?"

"You'd better drive Eddie theirs a que formin' and I'm sittin' in the front with my lovely friend whose gonna take me a drive to help be buy some hair dye"

Edward looked out the back window to see three cars all getting rather impatient, he started the car again. He rolled down the window and loosened his tie, he suddenly felt too warm and at this point, even though he rarely touched alcohol, a large drink would have been appreciated. Harley had all ways made him nervous but since her conversion to madness he hadn't spent much time with her let alone spoke to her because of Joker. Was she trying to get him killed?

"Dye? What colour?"

"Maybe brown or red…ooohh or maybe brown with streaks of black and red…what do you think?"

"I think you could have hair like a parrot and you'd carry it off, why thee change?"

She smiled and looked ahead out the window.

"Why not?"


	2. Hot Hot Hot

**Authors Note:**

_**I do hope you liked the last chapter. I seem to be on a roll the last 24 hours, I have wrote 2 chapters for this fan fic and I managed to churn out 3 chapters for my other one...hope I can keep this up and get actual college work done too :p**_

**Disclaimer:**

_**I do NOT own any of the characters in this fanfic, DC do...all hail DC for giving us Harley Quinn!**_

Edward was enchanted by the new Doctor. Despite being young, she appeared to have a lot of brains. Of course it didn't take long for the rumour's to start flying about how the beautiful, Miss Quinzel had managed to earn her Doctor-et, but Edward treated those for what he assumed they where. Rumour's.

She had caused quite a stir by pushing for the more...well known inmates that she was given, and she made no secrete that she was attracted to the "element of glamour" surrounding the high profile patients.

She was small in stature, and to compensate for her lack of hight, she wore high heels. She took to wearing black pencil skirts with white blouses, small glasses and always had her blonde hair tied in a tight bun. Edward had thought she did this to try and make herself look older, more professional. She was very attractive without trying and she was constantly hit on by guards, nurses even doctors. It must have been annoying but she all ways smiled and politely declined. Classy

During their sessions she had, he noticed, a peculiar way of speaking. As if she was trying to cover up her real accent. Sometimes bits would slip through though when she cracked a joke or got flustered. It intrigued Edward, however he wasn't alone in his interest when it came to the young Harleen Frances Quinzel.

"Ed sweetie, are you ok? You looked like you where thinkin' too hard"

Harley had cam jumping out of the drug store with a big bag of products that she threw in the back before she hopped into the passenger seat.

"come on, take me to your place and I'll cook you some pasta as a thank you for letting me take advantage of your good nature"

Edward looked at her.

_I'm a dead man... _he thought to himself as he smiled at his bubbly acquaintance.

_**Latter that night**_

Harley had killed off two towels in the process of colouring her hair, one that she had dropped colourant on as she tip-toed to see in the bathroom mirror and the other she had on her freshly coloured, damp hair as she wrecked Edwards tiny kitchen. He didn't mind.

"Here try this...is it too hot?"

She shoved a large spoon toward him and he had no way to escape the red gloop heading for him. He took the spoon quickly and tried it.

"Well?"

Harley stood watching him intently. He couldn't escape!

_Holy fuck my mouth!_

"It's just right, Harley"

He grabbed the glass of water beside him and gulped it down. Harley tried a bit herself and to his astonishment she didn't even flinch.

"You sure? I usually put more spice in it to give it a kick but I wasn't sure if you like spicy pasta so I only used a little"

"Oh no, that is...perfect"

_How can someone that tiny and fragile looking handle that much spice?! that is a riddle in its self! _Edward smiled a little to himself as he poured another glass of water.


	3. Gobsmacked

**AUTHORS NOTE:**

**Hellloooo! Been a while I know but here you go, new chapter. Enjoy and I'll post another one soon, I promise!**

**Comment, review, tell me your thoughts.**

**Christina x**

**DISCLAMER:**

**I do NOT own any of these characters, DC does.**

Meanwhile across town

The joker and crane had continued having drinks long past dinner time and when they suddenly realised it was now going on seven pm the hunt for Harley began.

"HARLEY!" the Jokers voice echoed thorough the now empty theatre, even his henchmen men that had hung around had left.

"Crane go check out the back and see if she is with those mutts, I'll check the bathroom".

Crane simply hiccuped, and staggered off through the tiny kitchen. Joker allowed a small laugh before he swayed toward the bathroom.

When Crane came wobbling through the doorway to find the Joker sitting on the edge of the bath holding Harley's jumpsuit, he thought he saw a sting of pain cross Jokers face. Or maybe it was just hunger...

"She's not out back Joker, and those are not mutts, their frickin hyaenas!" Crane had almost been bitten by Harley's baby's because they didn't recognise him, Joker didn't move.

He sat still for a moment staring at the red and black material in his hands before he slowly raised his gaze to Crane.

"She's gone out...in public...alone" Joker suddenly stood up and threw the jumpsuit at Crane before he breezed past him.

"I'll just get one of my guys to pick me up, I can't drive" the doctor quickly scrabbled for his phone and prayed the clown's girlfriend wouldn't arrive home before he got out!

One hour latter

Joker flinched as the door clattered open and Harley came bursting through.

"Hey Sweetie! I got Pizza and Hot dogs for dinner...are you OK?"

Joker watched her as she wandered across to the table where she sat down the food and her purse. For a moment he was confused and didn't know what to make of this strange woman who sounded like Harley. He was slack jawed as she shrugged off her red sweater.

The red hair with black streaks that cascaded over her shoulders, the tiny white tank top that clung to her, the black biker pants that had two red diamonds sewn onto the left leg and finally the thigh high red boots. She had blood red lips and her bright blue eyes where surrounded in smoky black eye-shadow.

"Puddin'?" Harley turned to Joker.

He blinked, shook his head and opened his mouth to speak but nothing came out and he just motioned his right hand toward her.

Then she realised...

"Oh! I got tired of the jester look, do you like it?" She moved closer to him and twirled to let him see her new outfit.

"It's...definitely different Harley" Joker now circled slowly around her, taking in the massive change. He stopped beside her and she looked up at him through her red and black hair then slowly let a small smile begin.

"What?" He had no idea if he liked this.

"I like it, feels good to look...Different" Harley turned and walked across to the table, bent over as she opened the pizza box in a very deliberate attempt to tease Joker, then she sat down, grabbed a slice of pizza and swung her legs onto the opposite chair and watched him.

Joker just stood their with a surprised look on his face, completely forgetting that he was supposed to be shouting at her about leaving without asking first. For the first time ever, the infamous Joker had been left feeling like an awkward, outcast teenager that had just been hit on by the head cheerleader!


End file.
